10 Nov 11 | Uncategorized
James Murdoch was accused of being a “mafia boss” as he gave further evidence today to the Commons culture, media and sport select committee about the phone hacking scandal.
During the two-and-a-half hours of questioning, Murdoch trod a fine line between appearing blissfully unaware of the extent of phone-hacking at the News of the World, and attempting to convince the committee that he supervised his company appropriately.
He also explicitly blamed the paper’s legal adviser Tom Crone and former editor Colin Myler for misleading the select committee, noting that their previous testimony was “economical”, “inconsistent” and full of “supposition”.
Murdoch repeated his previous claim that he had not received “evidence of widespread criminality” at the News of the World in meetings in May and June 2008 with Crone and Myler.
However, this contradicts evidence given by the pair, who told the committee in September that they had discussed with Murdoch the infamous “for Neville” email during said meetings. The email contained transcripts of hacked voicemails on the phone of Gordon Taylor, who was then suing the paper for breach of privacy. It is seen as a key indicator that hacking extended beyond Clive Goodman, the paper’s Royal correspondent who had been jailed in 2007 for hacking the phones of members of the Royal family.
He also maintained the pair had never discussed with him the significance of Michael Silverleaf QC’s legal opinion from 3 June 2008, which warned of “a culture of illegal information access” at News International that involved “at least three” of its reporters.
The News Corp boss was scrutinised in light of Silverleaf’s opinion, which also advised the newspaper to settle its case against Taylor. Murdoch insisted that he had no knowledge of the memo prior to his authorising a £750,000 payout made to Taylor in August of the same year. Again, he blamed Crone and Myler, arguing they “should have told me the whole story”.
Yet why Murdoch did not scrutinise the details of the Taylor payout, as well as his apparent ignorance of the scale of criminal activity at News International, raised issues of his competence as an executive. The committee asked, “which is worse? Willful blindness or incompetence by not knowing what was going on?”
Murdoch responded that News International was a “small piece of the News Corporation cake” and that it was “impossible” to manage every detail.
“I can’t believe your organisation has been so successful by being so cavalier with money,” Philip Davies MP added later.
Paul Farrelly said,
The one thing that shows us and any 10-year-old that the News of the World did not stack up is that Gordon Taylor was not a royal or a member of the royal household.”
Did [Murdoch] not ask “how come this man [Mulcaire] had hacked this phone when he [Taylor] is not royal?”
Did you not ask “Who the hell else had Mulcaire been hacking?”
Murdoch promised that lessons had been learnt, claiming his intention was for News Corp to be “as transparent as possible” in the future.
The riveting moment came when Labour MP Tom Watson revealed he had met former News of the World chief reporter Neville Thurlbeck immediately prior to the committee hearing. Watson said Thurlbeck told him that Crone had intended to show Murdoch the “for Neville” email in May 2008.
Watson quoted Thurlbeck as saying:
This is not some vague memory, I was absolutely on a knife edge. Tom [Crone] took it to him. The following week I said “did you show him the email?” He said “yes I did”. Now he can’t remember whether he showed it to Mr Murdoch or not. He said “it’s alright, it’s fine, it’s settled.”
Murdoch again denied all knowledge of the email, after which Watson accused the News Corp executive of being “the first mafia boss in history who didn’t know he was running a criminal enterprise.”
Murdoch told Watson his comment was “inappropriate”.
Reasserting his executive position, Murdoch also refused to rule out closing The Sun if evidence of phone hacking at the paper were to emerge. He said the recent arrest of Sun reporter Jamie Pyatt in connection with payments made to police officers was a “matter of great concern”, while Steve Rotheram MP told the committee that the words “the Sun” appeared in notes seized from the private investigator Glenn Mulcaire.
Murdoch also condemned the revelations this week of surveillance of hacking victims’ lawyers, calling it “appalling” and “unacceptable.”
Wrapping up the hearing, John Whittingdale MP said it was “unlikely” there would be future sessions.
The challenge now is for the committee to weigh up the contradictions between Murdoch’s account and those of Crone, Myler and Thurlbeck.
08 Nov 11 | Leveson Inquiry
Lord Justice Leveson has rejected a call from the Crown Prosecution Service and Metropolitan Police in which they asked to review evidence submitted to the inquiry and decide what information can be made public or shared with participants.
The joint submission made last month by the Met and the CPS expressed concerns that an individual who is later charged may claim the Inquiry breached their right to a fair trial, as evidence will be heard before criminal trials have occurred. As a result, the submission requested suggests that any document that the Inquiry wishes to disclose to other core participants or make public should first be shown to a nominated police officer, who would then be able to veto any information that might prejudice criminal proceedings.
Neil Garnham QC, representing the Met and CPS, told the Inquiry at a public hearing on 31 October that he was concerned not only that the Inquiry may risk prejudicing the criminal investigation, but also that, in reporting the Inquiry, the media might “go beyond fair reporting” and damage proceedings.
Leveson said he did not accept these concerns, stating in today’s ruling that adhering to the Met and CPS’s requests would “substantially increase the work that has to be put into adducing evidence before me” and may potentially “damage both the public perception of the Inquiry and its timeliness.” Leveson suggested he himself will decide what information might pose a risk to the criminal investigation.
The first hearing of the Inquiry will take place on 14 November, with victims’ evidence to be heard from 21 November. The Inquiry is likely to hear evidence from witnesses until February 2012.
Follow Index on Censorship’s coverage of the Leveson Inquiry on Twitter – @IndexLeveson.
31 Oct 11 | Leveson Inquiry
How far the Leveson Inquiry could prejudice the ongoing police investigation into phone hacking, raised last week in a joint submission by the Metropolitan Police and the Crown Prosecution Service, took up much of the morning’s hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice.
The session was held to discuss the issue raised at last week’s hearing, namely concerns that an individual who is later charged may claim the Inquiry breached their right to a fair trial, as evidence will be heard before criminal trials have occurred. The hearing also debated journalists testifying anonymously, as well as further applications for core participant status.
Neil Garnham QC, representing the Met and CPS, told the Inquiry his concern was not only a risk of prejudicing criminal proceedings, but also the prospect that, in reporting the Inquiry, the media might “go beyond fair reporting” and damage the investigation.
Lord Justice Leveson replied that part one of the Inquiry, which will examine culture, practices, and ethics of the press, must create a “narrative” on which he will base any recommendations. Otherwise, he added, the Inquiry would “not be grounded in reality”.
He also questioned the practicalities of filtering information and evidence through the Met and CPS, which might then be subject to a judicial review. Were either the Met or CPS to raise any “red flags”, Leveson said, “the Inquiry could go on for a lifetime.”
Meanwhile, a legal representative for Surrey Police argued the force should be granted core participant status — which would allow them full accesses to documents produced during the inquiry and entitle them to give evidence either in person or through a lawyer.
He expressed concern that the Inquiry might trigger further bad press for the force, which has been criticised for not pursuing evidence that murdered teenager Milly Dowler’s phone was hacked by the News of the World in 2002. He added that several Surrey Police officers had been victims of phone hacking during the investigation into Dowler’s disappearance.
Leveson said that everyone had to “grin and bear” criticism in the public domain, including himself. “It is what a free press is all about,” he argued.
He also refuted Surrey Police’s argument that not granting them core participant status would severely limit their involvement in the Inquiry. He said the issue was “not contentious”, later adding that if there is anything the force could do to provide him with an accurate narrative, they would be given the opportunity to do so.
Leveson did, however, grant the National Union of Journalists core participant status, adding that one way for journalists to give evidence anonymously — an interest expressed by several reporters, the hearing was told — might be to do so through the union. Leveson stressed that the names of any journalists who had approached the Inquiry team will not be put into the public domain.
He also cautioned against identifying the newspaper with which anonymous witnesses are affiliated, arguing it might lead to the release of material that the paper “would feel obliged to deal with”.
Returning to the issue of the police investigation, Garnham expressed his concern that secret evidence kept by the inquiry and not revealed to the public could raise issues of fairness in criminal proceedings, namely that the evidence may be used in favour of defendant on trial.
Telegraph Media Group and Trinity Mirror were also granted core participant status.
The first hearing of the Inquiry will take place on 14 November, with victims’ evidence to be heard at the high court from 21 November. The Inquiry is likely to hear evidence from witnesses until February 2012.
Follow Index on Censorship’s coverage of the Leveson Inquiry on Twitter – @IndexLeveson.
27 Oct 11 | Leveson Inquiry
A schedule of hearings and the issue of potential anonymity for witnesses giving evidence were the major discussion points at yesterday’s directions hearing as part of the Leveson Inquiry into phone hacking.
The first hearing will take place on 14 November, with victims’ evidence to be heard at the high court from 21 November. It was also announced yesterday that the inquiry is likely to hear evidence from witnesses until February 2012.
Victims include the parents of murdered teenager Milly Dowler, whose voicemail messages were hacked and deleted by the News of the World after she went missing in March 2002, giving her family the impression she was in fact alive and checking her voicemail.
Robert Jay QC, counsel to the inquiry, also raised the issue of Lord Justice Leveson potentially granting anonymity to witnesses who may fear for their “jobs or professional reputation” if they give evidence.
Jay said anyone who wishes to give evidence to inquiry anonymously can do so if Leveson makes an order of section 19 of the 2005 Inquiry Act, which restricts public access and protects witnesses’ identities, in agreement with article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects witnesses’ rights.
Jay contended, however, that submitting evidence anonymously would strip the possibility of cross-examination.
Leveson pledged he would respect a request for anonymity, clarifying that those making a request should submit their evidence to the solicitor of the inquiry, along with the reasons for their request.
Last week The Guardian reported that the panel sees anonymous evidence “as a way to uncover a true picture of life at Britain’s tabloid newspapers”, having been criticised for not including members with experience of tabloid or regional newspapers. Leveson also expressed yesterday his intention to visit a regional newspaper to “see how it works.”
Another topic addressed was the Metropolitan Police and Crown Prosecution Service’s fear that suspects in the police investigation into phone-hacking could try to sabotage prosecutions, namely because evidence will be heard before criminal trials have occurred and charges brought forward.
In a joint submission to the Inquiry, the Met and CPS outlined their concern that an individual who is later charged may claim the Inquiry breached their right to a fair trial. Responding to this, Leveson stressed that his priority would be balancing the “absolute requirement” that anyone charged is given a fair trial along with resolving issues “in a way that satisfies public.”
The inquiry, which Lord Justice Leveson has said will focus more about the culture, practices and ethics of the press rather than “who did what to whom”, is expected to take a year to complete.
Rupert Murdoch’s News International is facing over 60 other claims of alleged phone-hacking. Among those suing are Sara Payne, who campaigned with News of the World to amend the law to allow parents to obtain access to information about paedophiles following the abduction and murder of her daughter Sarah in 2000.
Tens of individuals have also applied for core participant status, which will allow them full accesses to documents produced during the inquiry and will entitle them to give evidence either in person or through a lawyer. Among them, the parents of missing toddler Madeleine McCann are due to give evidence regarding invasion of privacy by the media.
A further pre-trial public hearing has been set for Monday 31 October.
Follow Index on Censorship’s coverage of the Leveson Inquiry on Twitter – @IndexLeveson.
